Height-adjustable seat

ABSTRACT

A height-adjustable seat includes an integrated height adjustment mechanism. The seat includes a seat body. A pneumatic cylinder having an upper end is received in a socket of the seat body. A bracket is arranged above the socket in the seat body. An elongated actuating lever is pivotally arranged above the pneumatic cylinder and held within the bracket. A spacer secures the elongated actuating lever in the bracket. The spacer has a snap-fit connection with the bracket. The bracket and the socket may be integrally molded portions of the seat body.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure generally relates to seating devices, and more specifically to height-adjustable seating devices with a gas spring and gas spring release mechanism.

BACKGROUND

Height-adjustable seats utilizing an adjustable pneumatic cylinder, also referred to as a gas spring, are generally known. A commonly used type of pneumatic cylinder includes a valve that is activated by pushing down a valve control knob at the top of the pneumatic cylinder.

The pneumatic cylinder is often attached to a chair mechanism. The term “chair mechanism” refers to mechanical components for adjusting the seat, in particular seat height. The chair mechanism is typically a separately formed assembly that includes several components, at least some of which are made of metal. The chair mechanism is usually bolted to an underside of a seat. The chair mechanism receives the pneumatic cylinder and includes a lever for activating the pneumatic cylinder. The chair mechanism may include a swivel/tilt mechanism.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure provides a height-adjustable seat. The seat integrates the functionality of known chair mechanisms. It reduces the complexity, cost and weight of known mechanisms. The seat can be recycled more easily than those utilizing separately formed metal chair mechanisms.

The height-adjustable seat includes a seat body. A pneumatic cylinder has an upper end received in a socket of the seat body. The socket may be conical and receive the pneumatic cylinder with interference fit. A bracket is arranged above the socket in the seat body. An elongated actuating lever is pivotally arranged above the pneumatic cylinder and held within the bracket. A spacer secures the elongated actuating lever in the bracket. The spacer has a snap-fit connection with the bracket. The seat may further include a compression spring arranged in the bracket so as to push the elongated actuating lever upwardly against the spacer.

The pneumatic cylinder may include an upwardly extending control knob. The elongated actuating lever pushes the control knob down when the elongated actuating lever is pivoted out of a normal orientation into a pivoted orientation.

The bracket may include a plurality of resilient arms, each of the resilient arms having a radially inwardly extending hook arranged at an upper end thereof. The hooks extend above the spacer and secure the spacer against upward movement. The bracket may also include two lateral slots. The seat body includes two lateral openings which are aligned with the lateral slots. The elongated actuating lever extends laterally through both the lateral slots and the lateral openings to a left side and a right side of the seat. The lateral slots secure the elongated actuating lever against forward and rearward movement.

The bracket may further include a front slot and a rear slot. The elongated actuating lever may include a front pin received in the front slot and a rear pin received in the rear slot. Thereby, the elongated actuating lever is secured against lateral movement.

Preferably, the seat body, the socket, and the bracket are integrally formed as one piece.

A second embodiment of a height-adjustable seat includes a seat body and a pneumatic cylinder. An upper end of the pneumatic cylinder is received in a socket of the seat body. A bracket is arranged above the socket in the seat body. An elongated actuating lever is pivotally arranged above the pneumatic cylinder and held within the bracket. A pivot support spacer secures the elongated actuating lever in the bracket. The pivot support spacer is connected to the bracket by a snap-fit connection. The spacer has four legs extending downwardly from a pivot support surface and four corresponding slots arranged between the legs.

The elongated actuating lever comprises a left body portion, a right body portion, a rear pivot extension, and a front pivot extension. In a normal orientation, the left body portion, the right body portion, the rear pivot extension and the front pivot extension are pushed upwardly against the pivot support surface by a compression spring. In an activation orientation, one of the left body portion, the right body portion, the rear pivot extension and the front pivot extension abuts the pivot support surface while the other of the left body portion, the right body portion, the rear pivot extension and the front pivot extension move downwardly away from the pivot support surface.

The height-adjustable seat may further include an actuating ring positioned around a lower part of the seat body. The actuating ring includes radially inwardly facing torsionally rigid lever extensions that are rigidly connected to outer portions of the elongated actuating lever. The rigid lever extensions and the outer portions of the elongated actuating lever may include overlapping surfaces connected by a screw and nut connection. A user can adjust the height of the seat by pushing the actuating ring down or pulling the actuating ring up anywhere along its circumference. The up/down movement of the ring translates into an up/down movement of the actuating lever or a front/rear pivot of the actuating lever. Due to a cross-shaped center portion of the actuating lever, either motion causes the center of the actuating lever to move downwardly and release the pneumatic cylinder.

The following detailed description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the invention or the application and uses of the invention. Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any theory presented in the preceding background or the following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a seat with integrated height adjustment mechanism.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the seat as in FIG. 1 .

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an interior of the seat as in FIG. 1 .

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the interior as in FIG. 3 without a spacer.

FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the seat as in FIG. 1 .

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a second seat with integrated height adjustment mechanism.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the seat as in FIG. 6 .

FIG. 8 is a perspective top view of a seat body of the seat as in FIG. 6 .

FIG. 9 is a perspective bottom and side view of a pivot support spacer of the seat as in FIG. 6 .

FIG. 10 is a perspective bottom and side view of a lever of the seat as in FIG. 6 .

FIG. 11 is a perspective bottom and side view of the lever as in FIG. 10 .

FIG. 12 is an exploded view of the seat as in FIG. 6 .

FIG. 13 is a cross sectional view of a seat with an activation lever in a normal orientation.

FIG. 14 is a cross sectional view of the seat as in FIG. 13 with the activation lever in an activated orientation.

FIG. 15 is an exploded view of an exemplary chair with a height adjustment mechanism integrated in a seat post.

FIG. 16 is an exploded view of a stool with height adjustment mechanism integrated in a seat post.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 5 , a first exemplary embodiment of a height-adjustable seat is illustrated. The seat may be part of a seating device such as a chair or a stool. Examples of an active seating device that may employ the height-adjustable seat are described in the applicant's international patent application publication WO 2020/250155 which claims priority to U.S. Prov. Patent Application 62/859,314 and in U.S. Prov. Patent Application 63/184,570. WO 2020/250155, U.S. 62/859,314 and U.S. 63/184,570 are hereby incorporated by reference thereto in their entireties.

The seat 100 is designed to be lightweight. The seat 100 requires assembly of only a few components, and can therefore be manufactured very cost effectively.

A seat body 110 forms the base of the seat. The seat body includes a centrally arranged socket 115 for receiving an upper end 142 of a pneumatic cylinder 140. The socket 115 is an integrally formed part of the seat body 110. The socket 115 may be an aperture formed during injection-molding the seat body 110. A lower end of the pneumatic cylinder is connected to a base of the seating device.

An upholstered cushion 120 covers an upper side of the seat body 110. The upholstered cushion 120 may include a foam core covered by a fabric layer. The upholstered cushion 120 is firmly connected to the seat body 110, for example along an outer perimeter thereof.

A bracket 170 is integrally formed in the seat body 110 above the socket 115. The bracket receives and holds an elongated actuating lever 130. The actuating lever 130 extends through lateral openings 112 of the seat body 110. The lateral openings 112 include a left side opening and a right side opening.

The actuating lever 130 is slightly shorter than a width of the seat body 110 so that it does not extend past the seat 100 yet is readily accessible within a user's reach. For example, the actuating lever's length may be about 85% of the width of the seat body. The length of the actuating lever 130 may more generally be between 75% and 95% of the width of the seat body 110.

The bracket 170 includes two lateral slots 177. The lateral slots 177 are aligned with the lateral openings 112 of the seat body 110. The actuating lever 130 extends through the lateral slots 177. The lateral slots 177 allow the actuating lever to pivot up and down, yet secure the actuating lever 130 against forward and backward movement. A front-to-back width of the lateral slots 177 is slightly larger than a corresponding width of the actuating lever 130.

The bracket 170 further includes front and rear slots 178. The front and rear slots 178 are arranged perpendicular to the lateral slots 177. The actuating lever 130 includes front and rear pins 135. These pins 135 are arranged in the front and rear slots 178 of the bracket 170. The pins 135 thereby prevent the actuating lever 130 from moving laterally. The front and rear pins 135 may have an oval cross-sectional shape.

The lateral slots 177 and front and rear slots 178 may be formed between four inner arms 175 which extend upwardly from a base of the bracket 170. The lateral slots 177 and front and rear slots 178 may form a cross-shaped space for a center portion of the actuating lever 130.

A spacer 150 is arranged within the bracket 170 above the actuating lever 130. The spacer 150 may be cup-shaped. The spacer 150 is secured within the bracket 170 between resilient outer arms 171. The outer arms 171 are circumferentially distributed cylinder segments. Each of the outer arms 171 may be arranged radially spaced outwardly of an inner arm with respect to a center axis of the seat body 110. The outer arms include a radially inwardly extending hook 172 arranged at an upper end thereof. The hooks 172 extend above the spacer 150 and secure the spacer 150 against axial upward movement. The outer arms form a snap-fit connection of the bracket 170 with the spacer 150.

A helical spring 160, also referred to as a compression spring, pushes the actuating lever 130 upwardly against the spacer 150. A lower end of the compression spring 160 is supported in an annular groove between the inner arms 175 and the outer arms 171 of the bracket 170.

The elongated actuating lever 130 may have a generally arcuate body. A left side 131 and a right side 132 of the actuating lever 130 both extend downwardly from an apex 133. When not in use the spring 160 pushes the apex 133 of the actuating lever 130 against a center of a lower wall 152 of the spacer 150. In that orientation, a lower side of the apex 133 is axially spaced above the control knob 145 of the pneumatic cylinder.

A user can activate the pneumatic cylinder by pushing either side 131, 132 of the actuating lever 130 downwardly or pulling either side of the actuating lever upwardly. For example, a user may push the right side 132 of the actuating lever 130 down or pull the left side 131 of the actuating lever 130 up. In that case, the actuating lever 130 pivots about a left pivot point 153 where the actuating lever 130 touches the spacer 150. The apex 133 of the actuating lever 130 moves downwardly until it reaches the control knob 145. Further downward movement causes the control knob 145 to be pushed down and the pneumatic cylinder 140 to be released, thereby allowing a height of the seat 100 to be adjusted.

The seat 100 can be easily assembled without tools. First, the spring 160 is inserted into the bracket 170 of the seat body 110. Then, the actuating lever 130 is inserted from a top of the seat or from a side. The actuating lever 130 is threaded through the lateral openings of the seat body 110 and the lateral slots 177 of the bracket 170. The actuating lever 130 may be tilted sideways during this assembly step.

Once the actuating lever is seated in the bracket 170, the spacer 150 is inserted between the outer arms 171 of the bracket 170. The outer arms 171 are resiliently deformed and pushed radially outwardly during this step. The spacer 150 is pushed down until the hooks 172 engage and the outer arms 171 snap back into their normal position. The spacer 150 is now snap-locked in place and with it also the actuating lever 130. The bottom 152 of the spacer 150 may abut an upper end of the lower arms 175 in this engaged position, thereby preventing any axial movement of the spacer 150.

Referring now to FIGS. 6-12 , a second embodiment of a height-adjustable seat 200 with integrated adjustment mechanism is presented. The seat 200 does not include a backrest and is suitable for use in any rotational orientation. A seat cushion 220 forming an upper surface of the seat 200 is rotationally symmetrical about a center axis of the seat 200.

The seat 200 includes a seat body 210 on top of which the seat cushion 220 is mounted. The seat cushion 220 reaches around an upper portion of the seat body 210. Lower ends of the cushion are hidden under a cover 280 which clips into the seat body 210 from below.

A socket 215 is arranged on an underside of the seat body 210. The socket 215 receives an upper end 242 of a pneumatic cylinder 240. The pneumatic cylinder 240 includes a control knob 245. The control knob 245 is centrally arranged at a top of the pneumatic cylinder 240. The pneumatic cylinder can be activated by pushing onto the control knob 245.

An elongated lever 230 is pivotally arranged within a bracket portion 270 of the seat body 210. The lever 230 includes a left lever body portion 231 which extends through a left lateral opening 211 of the seat body 210. A right lever body portion 232 extends through a right lateral opening 212 of the seat body 210. Extending forward and backward from a center 233 of the lever 230 are a front pivot extension 235 and a rear pivot extension 234. A center portion of the lever 230 including the pivot extensions 234, 235 is generally cross-shaped. A vertical pin 236 extends downwardly from the center portion of the lever 230. The vertical pin 236 is aligned with and arranged directly above the control knob 245 of the pneumatic cylinder 240. The vertical pin 236 may be a separately formed component that is adjustable relative to the lever 230. For example, the vertical pin 236 may be screwed into the lever 230 and thereby be height-adjustable relative to the lever 230. This allows to compensate for build tolerances and adjust a release distance to triggering the pneumatic cylinder 240.

The lever 230 is secured in the bracket portion 270 of the seat body 210 by a pivot support spacer 250. The pivot support spacer 250 has a generally cylindrical body with four legs 251-254. The legs 251-254 have the shape of cylindrical sectors. A cross-shaped space between the legs 251-254 receives the cross-shaped center portion of the lever 230.

The legs 251-254 extend downwardly from an annular pivot support surface 255 of the spacer 250. A cylindrical body portion 256 extends upwardly from the annular pivot support surface 255. Two resilient latching arms 257 extend upwardly from the pivot support surface 255 outwardly of the cylindrical body portion 256. The resilient latching arms 257 are slanted. The resilient latching arms 257 are designed to form a snap-fit connection with the bracket 270 in the area of the lateral openings 211, 212. Stiffening ribs 258 are circumferentially spaced around the cylindrical body portion 256. The stiffening ribs 258 may include an alignment feature in form of a protrusion 259 that aligns with a corresponding recess 272 in the bracket portion 270 of the seat body 210.

A spring 260 pushes the lever 230 upwardly against the annular pivot support surface 255. A lower end of the spring 260 is seated in an annular groove 271 of the bracket portion 270. The annular groove 271 is coaxially aligned with the socket 215. The lever 230 may include a corresponding groove (shown in FIGS. 13 and 14 ) to receive an upper end of the spring 260,

When not activated, the lever 230 assumes a generally horizontal orientation. This is due to the spring 260 pushing the lever 230 upwardly against the spacer 250. The left body portion 231, the right body portion 232, the front pivot extension 235, and the rear pivot extension 234 all push against the annular pivot support surface 255 of the spacer 250. The spacer 250 is held down by the resilient latching arms 257 being latched into the bracket 270.

The lever 230 can be pivoted left, right, forward, and backward. For example, the right lateral side 232 of the lever 230 may be pushed down. In that case, the lever 230 pivots about a point where its left lateral side 231 abuts the annular pivot support surface 255. The center portion of the lever 230 moves down and eventually the vertical pin 236 pushes onto the control knob 245 of the pneumatic cylinder 240. This releases the pneumatic cylinder 240 and allows a height of the seat 200 to be adjusted. The distance between the center portion of the lever 230 and the annular pivot support surface 255 defines a lever arm and correspondingly a lever force required to release the pneumatic cylinder 240.

The lever 230 is firmly connected to an actuating ring 290. The actuating ring 290 is positioned around a lower part of the seat body 210 and within reach of a user when seated. The actuating ring 290 extends in a full circle around the seat body 210 and allows a user to adjust the seat height irrespective of the seat's rotational orientation relative to the user.

The actuating ring 290 includes two radially inwardly facing torsionally rigid lever extensions 291. Inner ends of the lever extensions 291 include an attachment surface 292 which overlaps a corresponding attachment surface 237 at outer ends of the lever 230. The lever 230 and the actuating ring 290 are connected by a screw and nut. The inner ends of the lever extensions 291 may include a molded cavity 293 for receiving the nut.

The connection between the actuating ring 290 and the lever 230, as well as the lever 230 itself, are torsionally rigid. The lever 230 can thus not only be pivoted left and right but also forward and backward. For example, a user may push down on a front portion of the actuating ring 290. This causes the lever 230 to be tilted. In that case, the lever 230 pivots about a point where its rear pivot extension 234 abuts the annular pivot support surface 255. Again, the center portion of the lever 230 moves down and eventually the vertical pin 236 pushes onto the control knob 245 of the pneumatic cylinder 240, thereby releasing the pneumatic cylinder 240 and allowing a height of the seat 200 to be adjusted.

The seat 200 can be assembled very cost effectively. First, the spring 260 is inserted into the bracket 270 of the seat body 210. Then, the lever 230 is inserted, either from above or sideways. The lever 230 may be tilted during assembly. Once the lever 230 is correctly positioned, the pivot support spacer 250 is inserted into the bracket 270, aligned, and pushed down until it snaps in place. The seat cushion 220 is placed onto the seat body 210 and secured. The seat cushion 220 may for that purpose include a rope along its outer perimeter which is tightened and secured during assembly. The cover 280 is clipped, from below, into the seat body 210 to cover the lower ends of the cushion 220. The actuating ring 290 is mounted by screwing its lever extensions 291 to outer portions of the lever 230. Finally, the pneumatic cylinder 240 is pushed into the socket 215 of the seat body 210.

FIGS. 13 and 14 illustrate the operating principle of a seat 300 with integrated height adjustment mechanism with respect to a third embodiment. The seat 300 includes an actuating lever 330. In FIG. 13 , the actuating lever 330 is in a (normal) neutral orientation. The lever's vertical pin 336 is arranged directly above the control knob 345 of the pneumatic cylinder 340. The actuating lever 330 is pushed upwardly against a spacer 350 by a spring 360. The spacer 350 is clipped into a bracket 370. The bracket 370 securely holds the spacer 350 in place.

FIG. 14 shows the actuating lever 330 in a (pivoted) activation orientation when a force 339 is applied to the lever. The actuating lever 330 is deflected out of its normally horizontal orientation into a pivoted orientation. The compression spring 360 is asymmetrically compressed on its right side. In the illustrated example, the lever 330 is pivoted to the right. The lever 330 pivots about a point 355 where its left lateral side 331 abuts the spacer 350. The center portion of the lever 330 moves down and the vertical pin 336 pushes down the control knob 345 of the pneumatic cylinder 340. This releases the pneumatic cylinder 340 and allows a height of the seat 300 to be adjusted.

As shown in FIG. 15 , the seat adjustment mechanism 401 need not be fully integrated in the seat 402. Instead, the seat adjustment mechanism 401 can be part of a seat post assembly 440 onto which the seat 402 is mounted.

A seat body 410 forms the base of the seat 402. The seat body 410 includes a centrally arranged socket 415 for receiving an upper end of the seat post assembly 440. The socket 415 may be an integrally formed part of the seat body 410. The socket 415 may be an aperture formed during injection-molding the seat body 410.

The seat post assembly 440 includes a seat post tube 441. Arranged within the seat post tube 441 is a pneumatic cylinder as previously described. A lower end of the seat post assembly 440 is connected to a base 403 of the chair 400.

A bracket 470 is fixedly received in an upper end of the seat post tube 441. The bracket 470 may alternatively be integrally formed at an upper end of the seat post tube 441. The shape of the bracket 470 may match the shape of the bracket 170 as previously described.

The bracket 470 receives and holds an elongated actuating lever 430. The actuating lever 430 is arranged underneath the seat body 410. This placement of the actuating lever 430 relative to the seat body 410 simplifies assembly of the seating device.

The bracket 470 includes two lateral slots 477. The lateral slots 477. The actuating lever 430 extends through the lateral slots 477. The lateral slots 477 allow the actuating lever 430 to pivot up and down. At the same time, the lateral slots 477 secure the actuating lever 430 against forward and backward movement. A front-to-back width of the lateral slots 477 is slightly larger than a corresponding width of the actuating lever 430.

The bracket 470 further includes front and rear slots 478. The front and rear slots 478 are arranged perpendicular to the lateral slots 477. The actuating lever 130 includes front and rear pins 435. These pins 435 are arranged in the front and rear slots 478 of the bracket 470. The pins 435 thereby prevent the actuating lever 430 from moving laterally. The front and rear pins 435 may have an oval cross-sectional shape.

A spacer 450 is arranged within the bracket 470 above the actuating lever 430. The spacer 450 may be cup-shaped with four protrusions that extend axially along the curved surface of the spacer. The protrusions may engage the lateral slots 477 and the front and rear slots 478 of the bracket 470. The spacer 450 is secured within the bracket 470 between resilient outer arms 471. The outer arms 471 may be circumferentially distributed cylinder segments.

A helical spring 460 pushes the actuating lever 430 upwardly against the spacer 450. A lower end of the compression spring 460 is supported within the seat post tube 441 at a lower end of the bracket 470. The elongated actuating lever 430 interacts with the pneumatic cylinder as previously described with reference to lever 130.

During assembly, the bracket 470 can be inserted into the upper end of the seat post tube 441. There, the bracket 470 may be received with a friction fit connection and may be further secured by gluing, welding, or by fasteners. The compression spring 460 may then be inserted into the bracket 470. Thereafter the elongated actuating lever 430 may be placed onto the compression spring 460. The spacer 450 can then be inserted into the bracket 470. Thereafter, the seat 402 may be placed onto the seat post assembly. More specifically, the upper end of the seat post assembly 440, including a major portion of the seat mechanism 401 may be received in the socket 415 of the seat body 410. An upper portion of the bracket 470 and the spacer 450 thereby extend into and are arranged within the seat body 410. The seat body 410 may be connected to the bracket 470 with a friction fit connection. The seat body 410 may push the spacer 450 downwardly into the bracket 470 and thereby secure the spacer 450 within the bracket 470.

The assembly process as described with respect to FIG. 15 enables the use of a single-piece circular lever 530 as shown in FIG. 16 . Since the circular lever 530 is entirely arranged below the seat 502, there is no need for a multi-part design as previously described. The single-piece circular lever 530 is particularly beneficial in combination with a stool 500 that has no backrest and thereby no defined front.

The words “example” and “exemplary” as used herein mean serving as an instance or illustration. Any embodiment or design described herein as “example” or “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments or designs. Rather, use of the word example or exemplary is intended to present concepts in a concrete fashion. As used in this application, the term “or” is intended to mean an inclusive “or” rather than an exclusive “or”. That is, unless specified otherwise or clear from context, “X employs A or B” is intended to mean any of the natural inclusive permutations. That is, if X employs A; X employs B; or X employs both A and B, then “X employs A or B” is satisfied under any of the foregoing instances. In addition, the articles “a” and “an” as used in this application and the appended claims should generally be construed to mean “one or more” unless specified otherwise or clear from context to be directed to a singular form.

Throughout this specification and in the following claims terms such as “up,” “down,” “horizontal,” “vertical,” etc. are used for the convenience of the reader and to align with examples shown in the drawings. It should be understood that the described object can be placed in any orientation and is not limited to the illustrated orientation.

While the present invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to the disclosed or illustrated embodiments but, on the contrary, is intended to cover numerous other modifications, substitutions, variations and broad equivalent arrangements that are included within the spirit and scope of the following claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A height-adjustable seat, comprising: a seat body (110); a pneumatic cylinder (140) having an upper end (142) received in a socket (115) of the seat body (110); a bracket (170) arranged above the socket (115) in the seat body (110); an elongated actuating lever (130) pivotally arranged above the pneumatic cylinder (140) and held within the bracket (170); and a spacer (150) securing the elongated actuating lever (130) in the bracket (170), the spacer (150) having a snap-fit connection with the bracket (170).
 2. The height-adjustable seat as in claim 1, further comprising a spring arranged in the bracket so as to push the elongated actuating lever (130) upwardly against the spacer (150).
 3. The height-adjustable seat as in claim 1, wherein the pneumatic cylinder (140) comprises an upwardly extending control knob (145), and wherein the elongated actuating lever (130) pushes the control knob (145) down when the elongated actuating lever (130) is pivoted out of a normal orientation into a pivoted orientation.
 4. The height-adjustable seat as in claim 1, wherein the bracket (170) comprises a plurality of resilient arms (171), each of the resilient arms (171) having a radially inwardly extending hook (172) arranged at an upper end thereof, and wherein each hook (172) extends above the spacer (150) and secures the spacer (150) against upward movement.
 5. The height-adjustable seat as in claim 1, wherein the bracket (170) comprises two lateral slots (177) and the seat body comprises two lateral openings (112), the lateral openings (112) being aligned with the lateral slots, wherein the elongated actuating lever (130) extends laterally through the lateral slots and the lateral openings to a left side and a right side of the seat.
 6. The height-adjustable seat as in claim 1, wherein the bracket (170) further comprises a front slot and a rear slot, wherein the elongated actuating lever (130) comprises a front pin received in the front slot and a rear pin received in the rear slot, whereby the elongated actuating lever (130) is secured against lateral movement.
 7. The height-adjustable seat as in claim 1, wherein the seat body (110), the socket (115), and the bracket (170) are integrally formed as one piece.
 8. A height-adjustable seat, comprising: a seat body (210); a pneumatic cylinder (240) having an upper end (242) received in a socket (215) of the seat body (210); a bracket (270) arranged above the socket (215) in the seat body (210); an elongated actuating lever (230) pivotally arranged above the pneumatic cylinder (240) and held within the bracket (270); and a pivot support spacer (250) securing the elongated actuating lever (230) in the bracket (270), wherein the pivot support spacer (250) is connected to the bracket (270) by a snap-fit connection, and wherein the pivot support spacer (250) comprises four legs extending downwardly from a pivot support surface (255).
 9. The height-adjustable seat as in claim 8, wherein the elongated actuating lever (230) comprises a left body portion (231), a right body portion (232), a rear pivot extension (234) and a front pivot extension (235), wherein, in a normal orientation, the left body portion (231), the right body portion (232), the rear pivot extension (234) and the front pivot extension (235) are pushed upwardly against the pivot support surface (235) by a compression spring, and wherein, in an activation orientation, one of the left body portion (231), the right body portion (232), the rear pivot extension (234) and the front pivot extension (235) abuts the pivot support surface (235) while others of the left body portion (231), the right body portion (232), the rear pivot extension (234) and the front pivot extension (235) move downwardly away from the pivot support surface (235).
 10. The height-adjustable seat as in claim 8, further comprising an actuating ring (290) positioned around a lower part of the seat body (210), the actuating ring comprising radially inwardly facing torsionally rigid lever extensions (291) that are rigidly connected to outer portions of the elongated actuating lever (230).
 11. The height-adjustable seat as in claim 10, wherein the torsionally rigid lever extensions (291) and the outer portions of the elongated actuating lever (230) include overlapping surfaces connected by a screw and nut connection.
 12. A height-adjustable seat, comprising: a seat body (410); a pneumatic cylinder (140) having an upper end (142); a bracket (470) at least partially arranged in the seat body (410); an actuating lever (430) pivotally arranged above the pneumatic cylinder (140) and held within the bracket (470); and a spacer (450) securing the actuating lever (430) in the bracket (470).
 13. The height-adjustable seat as in claim 12, wherein the bracket (470), the actuating lever (430) and the spacer (450) collectively form a seat adjustment mechanism (401), and wherein the seat adjustment mechanism (401) extends into the seat body (410) through a socket (415).
 14. The height-adjustable seat as in claim 13, wherein the pneumatic cylinder (140) is arranged within an seat post tube (441) and wherein the seat adjustment mechanism (401) is firmly connected to an upper end of the seat post tube (441). 